2,700 without power, more rain on way

WEATHER

Updated 6:37 am, Saturday, December 1, 2012

Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle

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A driver waits to talk to California Highway Patrol officers next to her damaged car after she hit the center divider on northbound Interstate 280 near Avalon Drive during Friday's rainstorm in San Bruno, Calif. on Nov. 30, 2012.

A driver waits to talk to California Highway Patrol officers next to her damaged car after she hit the center divider on northbound Interstate 280 near Avalon Drive during Friday's rainstorm in San Bruno,

California Highway Patrol officer Mike Ferguson gives instructions to a driver involved in a minor three car accident on southbound Highway 101 near Cesar Chavez Boulevard during Friday's rainstorm in San

California Highway Patrol Officer Michael Ferguson uses the shoulder to pass traffic while responding to a single-car accident. One of the CHP's key jobs is to clear accidents quickly.

California Highway Patrol Officer Michael Ferguson uses the shoulder to pass traffic while responding to a single-car accident. One of the CHP's key jobs is to clear accidents quickly.

Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle

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A San Francisco Public Works crew finishes their clen up of a fallen tree along Pine Street near Laguna after it fell across a car shattering the rear window, in San Francisco, Calif. on Friday Nov. 30, 2012, as another heavy rain storm moves through the Bay Area.

A San Francisco Public Works crew finishes their clen up of a fallen tree along Pine Street near Laguna after it fell across a car shattering the rear window, in San Francisco, Calif. on Friday Nov. 30, 2012,

California Highway Patrol officers help a driver involved in a single car accident on northbound Interstate 280 near Avalon Drive during Friday's rainstorm in San Bruno, Calif. on Nov. 30, 2012.

California Highway Patrol officers help a driver involved in a single car accident on northbound Interstate 280 near Avalon Drive during Friday's rainstorm in San Bruno, Calif. on Nov. 30, 2012.

Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle

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A tow truck driver prepares to tow a stranded vehicle on southbound Highway 101 during Friday's rainstorm in San Francisco, Calif. on Nov. 30, 2012.

A tow truck driver prepares to tow a stranded vehicle on southbound Highway 101 during Friday's rainstorm in San Francisco, Calif. on Nov. 30, 2012.

Photo: Paul Chinn, The Chronicle

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A San Francisco Public Works crew removes a fallen tree along Grove Street near Divisadero after it fell across a car in San Francisco, Calif. on Friday Nov. 30, 2012, as another heavy rain storm moves through the Bay Area.

A San Francisco Public Works crew removes a fallen tree along Grove Street near Divisadero after it fell across a car in San Francisco, Calif. on Friday Nov. 30, 2012, as another heavy rain storm moves through

A pedestrian crosses Cabrillo Street in San Francisco on Friday morning during a steady rainfall.

A pedestrian crosses Cabrillo Street in San Francisco on Friday morning during a steady rainfall.

Photo: SF Gate / Douglas Zimmerman

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A pedestrian walks barefoot in San Francisco on Friday morning during a steady rainfall.

A pedestrian walks barefoot in San Francisco on Friday morning during a steady rainfall.

Photo: SF Gate / Douglas Zimmerman

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A pedestrian pushes a baby stroller up a hill in San Francisco on Friday morning during a steady rainfall.

A pedestrian pushes a baby stroller up a hill in San Francisco on Friday morning during a steady rainfall.

Photo: SF Gate / Douglas Zimmerman

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This NOAA satellite image taken Friday morning shows cloudiness from the northern and central Rockies westward to the Pacific Northwest and California bringing rain to the west coast of the U.S.

This NOAA satellite image taken Friday morning shows cloudiness from the northern and central Rockies westward to the Pacific Northwest and California bringing rain to the west coast of the U.S.

Photo: Associated Press

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Rain this morning in Mill Valley.

Rain this morning in Mill Valley.

Photo: CBS San Francisco

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The Bay Bridge was dark without lights for several hours this morning.

The Bay Bridge was dark without lights for several hours this morning.

Photo: CBS San Francisco

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The Transamerica Pyramid, seen from Columbus Avenue bus, stands out even when the skies turn stormy.

The Transamerica Pyramid, seen from Columbus Avenue bus, stands out even when the skies turn stormy.

Photo: Pete Kiehart, The Chronicle

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2,700 without power, more rain on way

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The river of rain forecast to drench the Bay Area this week has taken its second swipe at the region, generating heavy downpours from the North Bay to the Santa Cruz Mountains, slowing commute traffic and downing electrical lines that supply thousands of households.

More than 2,700 Bay Area power customers were without electricity Friday evening, down from a high of 15,000 earlier in the day, according to Pacific Gas and Electric Co. officials. The majority of outages were in the North Bay.

Rainfall totals ranged from impressive - more than an inch in San Francisco and 2-plus inches in Oakland - to gully-washing, such as the 7 1/2 inches that came down in the Sonoma County town of Venado.

At the height of the storm, the morning commute was predictably slow.

"Anytime a storm like this hits anywhere in California, CHP is extremely busy," Officer Michael Ferguson of the California Highway Patrol said as he patrolled San Francisco highways. "There are times when we're going from call to call, crash to crash, and it just doesn't stop."

The priority for officers during a rainy rush hour is to keep the roads clear as best as possible.

That includes pushing disabled vehicles out of the roadway and onto a shoulder, as Ferguson had to do for a Ford Econoline van that stalled on westbound Interstate 80 near the Seventh Street on-ramp.

Another officer did the same for a red Nissan sedan that hit the center divide and spun out on Interstate 280 northbound just south of the Avalon Drive exit.

The CHP expects more of the same as heavy rains are predicted to continue off and on throughout the weekend.

As the deluge picks up Saturday night, San Francisco residents can expect about an inch of rainfall, with totals in the wettest parts of the Bay Area reaching up to 7 inches, according to Austin Cross, a forecaster with the National Weather Service.

Cross said the agency is monitoring potential flooding in the Russian River area and in the coastal mountains.

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